Expression of heterologous DNA sequences in a plant host is dependent upon the presence of operably linked regulatory elements that are functional within the plant host. Choice of the promoter sequence will determine when and where within the organism the heterologous DNA sequence is expressed. Where expression in specific tissues or organs is desired, tissue-preferred promoters may be used. Where gene expression in response to a stimulus is desired, inducible promoters are the regulatory element of choice. In contrast, where continuous expression is desired throughout the cells of a plant, constitutive promoters are utilized. Additional regulatory sequences upstream and/or downstream from the core promoter sequence may be included in the expression constructs of transformation vectors to bring about varying levels of expression of heterologous nucleotide sequences in a transgenic plant.
Frequently it is desirable to express a DNA sequence in particular tissues or organs of a plant. For example, increased resistance of a plant to infection by soil- and air-borne pathogens might be accomplished by genetic manipulation of the plant's genome to comprise a tissue-preferred promoter operably linked to a heterologous pathogen-resistance gene such that pathogen-resistance proteins are produced in the desired plant tissue. Alternatively, it might be desirable to inhibit expression of a native DNA sequence within a plant's tissues to achieve a desired phenotype. In this case, such inhibition might be accomplished with transformation of the plant to comprise a tissue-preferred promoter operably linked to an antisense nucleotide sequence, such that expression of the antisense sequence produces an RNA transcript that interferes with translation of the mRNA of the native DNA sequence.
Additionally, it may be desirable to express a DNA sequence in plant tissues that are in a particular growth or developmental phase such as, for example, cell division or elongation. Such a DNA sequence may be used to promote or inhibit plant growth processes, thereby affecting the growth rate or architecture of the plant.
Isolation and characterization of reproductive-tissue-preferred, particularly immature-ear-preferred, promoters that can serve as regulatory elements for expression of isolated nucleotide sequences of interest in a reproductive-tissue-preferred manner are needed for impacting various traits in plants and in use with scorable markers.